South Shore, Chicago

South Shore is one of 77 defined community areas of Chicago, Illinois, United States. A predominantly African-American neighborhood on the city's South Side, the area is named for its location along the city's southern lakefront. Although South Shore has seen a greater than 40% decrease in residents since Chicago's population peaked in the 1950s, the area remains one of the most densely populated neighborhoods on the South Side.[2] The community benefits from its location along the waterfront, its accessibility to Lake Shore Drive, and its proximity to major institutions and attractions such as the University of Chicago, the Museum of Science and Industry, and Jackson Park.

South Shore
Community area
Community Area 43 - South Shore
Rainbow Beach along the shore of Lake Michigan.
Location within the city of Chicago
Coordinates: 41°45.6′N 87°34.8′W
CountryUnited States
StateIllinois
CountyCook
CityChicago
Neighborhoods
list
Area
 • Total2.99 sq mi (7.74 km2)
Population
 (2015[1])
 • Total51,451
 • Density17,000/sq mi (6,600/km2)
Demographics 2015[1]
 • White2.15%
 • Black93.47%
 • Hispanic1.74%
 • Asian0.35%
 • Other2.30%
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Codes
60649 and parts of 60619, 60637
Median household income$26,425[1]
Source: U.S. Census, Record Information Services

History

Like all of what is now the City of Chicago, what is now the South Shore community area was inhabited by a number of Algonquian peoples, including the Mascouten and Miami.[3] After the expulsion of Native Americans by white settlers in the nineteenth century, became characterized by small settlements; Essex, Bryn Mawr, Parkside, Cheltenham Beach, and Windsor Park.[4] The area, bounded by 67th and 79th streets to the north and south and by Stony Island Avenue and Lake Michigan to the west and east, was mostly swampland in the 1850s when Ferdinand Rohn, a German truck farmer, utilized trails along the area's high ground to transport his goods to Chicago. In 1861, the Illinois General Assembly incorporated Hyde Park Township, which included South Shore.[5] The area’s population grew as workers in the nearby steel industry settled in the area.[4] Following the June 29, 1889 elections, the South Shore community area was annexed into the City of Chicago with the entirety of Hyde Park Township.[6] The location of the World's Columbian Exposition in nearby Jackson Park prompted the sale of land and building lots. As in other parts of Chicago, the desire for affordable housing at the start of the twentieth century led to the large scale construction of bungalows. Unlike other areas in which bungalows were built en masse, South Shore's bungalow residents were largely affluent. Additionally, Shore Shore was the destination for white flight from Washington Park as immigrants and African Americans moved there.[4]

After racially restrictive covenants were declared unconstitutional by Shelley v. Kraemer, African American families began to move out of the overcrowded black neighborhoods into South Shore.[4] The South Shore Commission initiated a program they called "managed integration", designed to check the physical decline of the community and to achieve racial balance. The initiative was largely unsuccessful on both counts. Per the 1950 census, South Shore had 79,000 residents and was 96% white with a large Jewish population. In 1960, the population had fallen to 73,000 people and was 90% White and 10% black. Other white residents chose to resist this change through violence against African Americans who chose to move to the neighborhood.[4] By 1970, the population had risen to 81,000 and was 69% black and 28% white. By 1980, the population had fallen slightly to 78,000, but was 94% black.[4]

By the late 1990s South Shore had developed into a middle-class African American community. Although the commercial strips on 71st and 75th still struggled, developers built a shopping plaza at 71st and Jeffery which is relatively successful. The cultural life of the area has been enhanced since the Park District purchased the waning South Shore Country Club in 1972, converting it into a cultural center. South Shore remains a destination for some who desire a congenial middle-class community on Chicago's South Side. The South Shore Current Magazine was launched with a mission to share the "Good News from Chicago's Cultural Soul Coast." The masthead reads: "Thriving as a catalyst for economic development, reflecting a truthful image, and a virtual meeting place for the South Shore Community."

On July 14, 2018, the community clashed with the Chicago Police Department after a local barber, Harith Augustus, was shot multiple times by a police officer at 71st Street and Chappel Avenue. Body camera footage without audio was released immediately contrary to past practices of months-long waits for video in other police shootings. Footage taken by body cameras of other officers has not been released.[7][8][9]

Neighborhoods and sub-areas
Map of the South Shore neighborhood.

Jackson Park Highlands
Main article: Jackson Park Highlands District

The Jackson Park Highlands District is a sixteen block area bounded by East 67th Street on the north. East 71st Street on the south, South Cregier Avenue on the west, and South Jeffrey Boulevard on the east.[10]

The Jackson Park Highlands District is a historic district in the South Shore community area of Chicago. The district was built in 1905 by various architects. It was designated a Chicago Landmark on October 25, 1989.[10] It is regarded as one of the South Side's upper-middle to affluent neighborhoods; others being Hyde Park, Kenwood, Bridgeport, Beverly, Mount Greenwood, and the western section of Morgan Park, and parts of Chatham. Jackson Park Highlands has homes that feature large front yard setbacks and lots 50 feet (15 m) wide. The area takes its name from a ridge that formerly overlooked Jackson Park. Architectural styles represented in this district include American Foursquare, Classical Revival, Queen Anne, Dutch Colonial, Colonial Revival, Tudor, and Prairie School.

The neighborhood has numerous cul-de-sacs with limited vehicular access. Directly north of the neighborhood lies the 18-hole Jackson Park Golf Course, a part of the Chicago Park District's Jackson Park, the third largest park in the city and home of the 1893 Columbian World Exposition.

The neighborhood was commissioned in the early 20th century. Its initial purpose was as a collection of model homes that would overlook the prized Jackson Park, which had hosted the World's Fair less than a decade prior. The neighborhood featured some of the most innovative concepts of the time, including large front yard setbacks, 50-foot (15 m) lot widths, underground utilities, and no alleys. When Chicago annexed Hyde Park just in time for the 1890 census (to beat out Philadelphia as the second largest metro area in the nation), the Highlands were left under governorship of the South Shore area.

Jeffery–Cyril Historic District
Main article: Jeffery–Cyril Historic District

The Jeffery–Cyril Historic District is a national historic district in the South Shore neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. The district comprises a cluster of six apartment buildings on Jeffery Boulevard, 71st Place, and Cyril Avenue. All six buildings were built between 1927 and 1929.[11] The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 5, 1986.[12]

South Shore Bungalow Historic District
Main article: South Shore Bungalow Historic District

The South Shore Bungalow Historic District is a residential historic district in the South Shore neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. The district contains 229 Chicago bungalows and twenty other residential buildings built between 1911 and 1930. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 10, 2008.[13]

Architecture
South Shore Cultural Center

The South Shore Cultural Center, previously the South Shore Country Club, began as a lakefront retreat for the wealthiest of Chicago's movers and shakers. The firm of Marshall and Fox, architects of the Drake, Blackstone, and Edgewater Beach hotels, were hired to design an opulent, Mediterranean-style clubhouse for a membership that included some of Chicago's most prominent families. The grounds provided private stables and members-only beach, and golf course. Tennis, horseback riding, and skeet shooting were enjoyed by guests the likes of Jean Harlow, Will Rogers, and Amelia Earhart. Between the first and second World Wars, a housing boom brought a development of luxury cooperative apartments and mansions to the neighborhood surrounding the club. In 1974 the club held its last members-only event. Today, the Chicago Park District owns the property. It has been restored to its original design and is now open to the public. A major drawback to the South Shore and surrounding South Chicago neighborhoods is that they are one of the few remaining Chicago lakefront neighborhoods that lack a fully publicly accessible neighborhood shoreline. There are lakefront gaps between the existing South Shore Cultural Center and Rainbow Beach to its south. Even larger masses of lakefront land along the South Chicago neighborhood (at the abandoned USX steel mill) with their beautiful vistas of the city's lakefront and Chicago skyline are undergoing development as parks and not completely available for recreational enjoyment by the adjacent neighborhood residents. Presently, Chicago Lakeside Development has proposed plans that call for the completion of this southern portion of lakefront with the development of new parklands, beaches, and a continuous waterfront bicycle and jogging path that will link Calumet Park and Beach in the East Side neighborhood to the South Shore Cultural Center in South Shore. Completion of such a project would result in improved access to Chicago's southern lakefront and connect it to neighborhoods such as Hyde Park and Bronzeville to the north.

At the northern end of South Shore is the historic district Jackson Park Highlands, one of Chicago's greatest examples of structural history and 19th-century architecture, with an abundance of homes in the style of American Foursquare, Colonial Revival, and Renaissance Revival on suburban-sized lots.

Located in the Bryn Mawr section of South Shore is the Allan Miller House at 7121 South Paxton Avenue. Commissioned by advertising executive Allan Miller, this home is an excellent example of Prairie-style architecture. Built in 1915, it is Chicago's only surviving building designed by John Van Bergen, a former member of Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture firm.

Politics
Aerial view of South Shore and Hyde Park in 2015

The South Shore community area has supported the Democratic Party in the past two presidential elections by overwhelming margins. In the 2016 presidential election, the South Shore cast 18,130 votes for Hillary Clinton and cast 373 votes for Donald Trump (96.07% to 1.98%).[14] In the 2012 presidential election, South Shore cast 22,515 votes for Barack Obama and cast 222 votes for Mitt Romney (98.77% to 0.97%).[15]

Culture and religion

The Nation of Islam National Center and Mosque Maryam are at 7351 South Stony Island Avenue.[16] The National Black United Front has its headquarters in the community.[17]

Transportation

The South Shore community area has five stations along the South Chicago Branch of the Metra Electric District. In South Shore, the South Chicago Branch runs eastward along East 71st Street making stops at Stony Island, Bryn Mawr, South Shore stations before going southeast along South Exchange Avenue making stops at Windsor Park, and Cheltenham stations. In addition, the 75th Street station is on the Greater Grand Crossing side of the border between that area and South Shore.[18]

Education

Chicago Public Schools operates district public schools.

In addition Urban Prep Academies operates the South Shore Campus.[19]

Muhammad University of Islam, a Nation of Islam-affiliated primary and secondary school, is adjacent to the Mosque Maryam.[16]

Historical population
CensusPop.%±
193078,755—
194079,5931.1%
195079,336−0.3%
196073,086−7.9%
197080,52710.2%
198077,743−3.5%
199061,517−20.9%
200061,5560.1%
201049,767−19.2%
Est. 201551,4513.4%
[1][20]

Religion

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago operates Catholic churches. On July 1, 2020, Our Lady of Peace, St. Bride, and St. Philip Neri in South Shore and Our Lady Gate of Heaven Church in Jeffery Manor will merge.[21]

Notable people
gollark: What's the idea?
gollark: Ah.
gollark: I'd be interested in some sort of replacement for krist which is:- actually decentralized- not ridiculously biased towards early adopters- is simpler- follows normal cryptocurrency thingies more closelybut Krist *mostly* works so...
gollark: Oh, TWO of them? Cool.
gollark: <@186486131565527040>?

References
  1. "Community Data Snapshot - South Shore" (PDF). MetroPulse. Retrieved April 15, 2017.
  2. http://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/ward-room/Chicagos-Most-Depopulated-Neighborhoods--205968891.html
  3. Quaife, Milo M. (1933). Checagou: From Indian Wigwam to Modern City, 1673–1835. Chicago, Ill: University of Chicago Press. OCLC 1865758.
  4. Ramsey, Emily (March 19, 2008). "NRHP Registration Form: South Shore Bungalow Historic District" (PDF). for the Historic Chicago Bungalow Association. Washington, D.C.: National Park Service. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  5. Orum, Anthony (2005). "Governing the Metropolis". The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago. Chicago Historical Society. Retrieved July 19, 2007.
  6. Cain, Louis P. (2005). "Annexation". The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago. Chicago Historical Society. Retrieved September 8, 2008.
  7. https://www.cnn.com/2018/07/15/us/chicago-officer-involved-shooting-protests/
  8. https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/harith-augustus-vigil-south-shorter-police-shooting/
  9. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-met-fatal-police-shooting-videos-augustus-20180717-story.html
  10. McLenahan, William (October 25, 1989). "Designation of Jackson Park Highlands District as Chicago Landmark" (PDF). Chicago City Council Journal of Proceedings. pp. 5929–5934. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  11. Rathbun, Peter; Kirchner, Charles (December 9, 1985). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: Jeffery-Cyril Historic District" (PDF). Illinois Historic Preservation Division. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  12. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  13. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  14. Ali, Tanveer (November 9, 2016). "How Every Chicago Neighborhood Voted In The 2016 Presidential Election". DNAInfo. Archived from the original on September 24, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  15. Ali, Tanveer (November 9, 2012). "How Every Chicago Neighborhood Voted In The 2012 Presidential Election". DNAInfo. Archived from the original on February 3, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  16. "Home page". Nation of Islam. Retrieved February 26, 2009.
  17. "National Office Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine." National Black United Front. Retrieved on September 28, 2011. "1809 East 71st, Suite 211 Chicago, Illinois 60649"
  18. "Metra Electric District (ME) to University Park Line Map". Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  19. "South Shore." Urban Prep Academies. Retrieved on December 10, 2010.
  20. Paral, Rob. "Chicago Community Areas Historical Data". Chicago Community Areas Historical Data. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
  21. Anderson, Javonte (2020-02-07). "23 Chicago-area Roman Catholic parishes to close, merge in latest round of restructuring". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  22. "10 self-made American billionaires". Business Insider. January 14, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  23. Heimer, Matt (December 24, 2018). "The Shrinking Middle Class: How We Got Here, And Why". Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  24. "History in South Shore". Domu. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  25. Van Matre, Lynn (July 15, 1999). "Reliving Old Times at Earl of Old Town". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
  26. Lewis, Gerald (May 15, 2009). South Shore Days 1940's & '50's. p. 209. ISBN 978-0578024776. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  27. Amer, Robin (February 23, 2013). "David Mamet's Chicago roots". WBEZ. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  28. Illinois Blue Book 1935-1936 page 115
  29. Nordgren, Sarah (August 2, 1992). "Senate Candidate Battles the Odds in Illinois". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
  30. Rossi, Rosalind (January 20, 2007). "The woman behind Obama". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on February 15, 2008. Retrieved January 22, 2008.
  31. Saslow, Eli (February 1, 2009). "From the Second City, An Extended First Family". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 24, 2010.
  32. Finnegan, William (May 31, 2004). "The Candidate: How the Son of a Kenyan Economist Became an Illinois Everyman". The New Yorker. Retrieved January 22, 2008.
  33. Pickert, Kate (October 13, 2008). "Michelle Obama, A Life". Time. Retrieved January 8, 2009.
  34. Lavin, Cheryl (July 11, 1999). "The Metafiscal Guru". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
  35. Strauss, Ben (December 8, 2011). "The Prayerful Young Man Can Also Nail a Jumper". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  36. Myers, Marc (February 4, 2020). "The Theater Granted Mandy Patinkin an Escape From Reality". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
  37. Belanger, Christian (May 10, 2019). "Documenting a Divide in South Shore". Chicago. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  38. Watson, James D. (2007). "Avoid Boring People: Lessons from a Life in Science". Alfred A. Knoff. ISBN 9780375412844. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  39. Cholke, Sam (October 5, 2017). "Kanye West's Boyhood Home To Be Torn Down To Become South Side Arts Center". DNAinfo. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
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